With the anticipated appeal in Novalpina having been heard at the end of last month, practitioners will be watching closely to see what the courts have in store for solvent liquidations. In particular, there remains considerable interest in whether the first instance findings concerning the requirement to pay all debts, together with statutory interest, within … Continue Reading
The Insolvency Service has launched its Second Review of the Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016 and the Insolvency (Scotland) (Company Voluntary Arrangements and Administration) Rules 2018. While this is formally a statutory post-implementation review, it is much more than a box-ticking exercise. The consultation provides an opportunity to influence how insolvency processes operate in … Continue Reading
In Cross Transport Ltd (In Administration) [2026] EWHC 1636 (Ch) the Court was asked to consider the “super priority” status afford to protected moratorium debts in the context of a subsequent administration. The Insolvency Act 1986 requires a company, entering a moratorium, to pay certain debts that are incurred during the moratorium period (“moratorium debts”), … Continue Reading
In NOAL SCSp v Novalpina Capital LLP [2025], the court took a strict view of the statutory requirement that companies entering a member’s voluntary liquidation (MVL) must be able to pay all their debts (including contingent or disputed ones) within 12 months. That mattered because, in practice, some insolvency professionals understood the legislation to mean … Continue Reading
The case of Currie & Anor v Fission Recruitment Services Ltd [2026] EWHC 1369 (Ch) (13 March 2026) is (we think) the only case to provide an example of what amounts to substantial injustice, such that a defect in the administration appointment process could not be remedied under r12.64 of the Insolvency Rules 2016. The … Continue Reading
Ahead of the Insolvency Rules Review expected this summer, the Insolvency Service have published a new statutory instrument (SI) that will come into force on 22 June. This seeks to tidy up a few of the “niggles” found in the Insolvency Rules 2016 (Rules) that have caused practitioners a headache, as well as making a … Continue Reading
When Waldorf Production UK Plc returned to court with its second restructuring plan in a year, the primary opposition it faced was from HMRC who voted against the plan. Mr Justice Green ultimately sanctioned the plan, cramming down the liabilities owed to HMRC but the judgment provides some helpful insight into the position taken by … Continue Reading
The Renters Rights Act 2025 (Act), which came into force on 1 May 2026 aims to give private tenants greater security and protection from eviction, in many respects aligning the position with business tenants who are in occupation under a protected business tenancy. For insolvency practitioners (IPs) appointed as administrators or liquidators of a business … Continue Reading
There is something to be said for “assume the worst” when it comes to defects in administration appointments and extensions. The court has taken this approach in a few cases where, rather than trying to work out the intricacies and effect of a defect on an appointment or extension, it has assumed the worst (i.e … Continue Reading
The Council of the European Union has just given the green light to a new EU Law that aims to bring consistency to key aspects of insolvency rules across Member States. For years, businesses and investors have had to navigate a patchwork of national regimes—each with its own procedures, timelines, and quirks. The new Directive … Continue Reading
It has been a while since we have had any cases challenging the fairness of a CVA, but in this recent Scottish decision where HMRC challenged the approval of Petrofac’s CVA on the basis of fairness, the court was required to consider HMRC’s contention that the CVA unfairly prejudiced its interests. In The Advocate General … Continue Reading
In Wonop ApS v Jagger (as joint administrator of FAI Realisations 2024 Ltd) [2026] EWHC 362 (Ch) the High Court was required to consider the effect of filing a notice under paragraph 84(4) of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986 – specifically, whether the registration of such a notice operates automatically to bring an … Continue Reading
The powers of provisional liquidators are generally as set out in the order appointing them. In longer running provisional liquidations, this can lead to multiple trips to court by the provisional liquidators to extend or confirm powers. In Re Versilia Solutions Limited[1] the High Court considered the scope of provisional liquidators’ powers in circumstances where, … Continue Reading
When a business runs into financial difficulties and proposes a Company Voluntary Arrangement (“CVA”), landlords, insolvency practitioners and local authorities can disagree about who should pick up the bill for business rates on empty leasehold premises – the landlord, or the company in CVA?… Continue Reading
In a world where it is much more common to send someone a text, a WhatsApp message, email or other electronic communication, than type a letter or put pen to paper, the Court does find itself now and again considering how the digital ways of communicating interact with laws that were introduced way before the … Continue Reading
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT)[1] upheld an employment tribunal’s decision that the claimant, Mr Chaudhry, could not recover a basic award for unfair dismissal following their employer’s insolvency unless an employment tribunal had determined the claim and made an award. Why is this relevant to administrators? Because for an employee to bring a claim the … Continue Reading
At the beginning of 2025 we shared our predictions on what we expected to see in the R&I market over the course of the year. How did we do? … Continue Reading
Despite meeting statutory jurisdictional requirements under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006, the High Court declined to exercise its discretion in favour of sanctioning Waldorf Production UK Plc’s restructuring plan in August 2025due to concerns about fair allocation of value and lack of meaningful engagement with unsecured creditors. Waldorf then sought and was granted … Continue Reading
In a first, the Pensions Regulator (TPR) has exercised its anti-avoidance powers under section 47 of the Pensions Act 2004 (PA04). While it has issued contribution notices (CN) under section 38 of the PA04 on several occasions, this is the first time TPR used its section 47 powers issuing a CN in respect of a … Continue Reading
As practitioners will know, when dealing with a sale of an insolvent business they will have to consider whether the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) applies. TUPE applies to transfers of businesses or undertakings (or parts of them). If there has been a relevant transfer under regulation 3 of TUPE, then … Continue Reading
The ability to cram down dissenting creditors in a Restructuring Plan (RP) is a helpful tool to ensure that a proposed restructuring is not derailed. But ultimately the power rests with the court in deciding whether to cram down an RP on dissenting creditors.… Continue Reading
In the High Court decision of Pagden v Ridgley [2025] EWHC 2674 (Ch), Mr Justice Foxton considered an appeal from a decision by ICC Judge Greenwood, who previously dismissed a challenge to the fees charged by an administrator for selling land subject to a fixed charge.… Continue Reading
On 8 October 2025, the Court approved a significant milestone in the long-running insolvency proceedings of Lehman Brothers International (Europe) (LBIE). After 17 years in administration, the Court granted an order terminating the administrators’ appointments and paving the way for LBIE to enter a members’ voluntary liquidation (MVL).… Continue Reading
HMRC has issued new guidance explaining its expectations for the proportionate and appropriate use of Notices of Intended Dividends (NOIDs) in an MVL in light of what it says are challenges created by practitioners issuing a NOID at the start of an MVL where doing so might be inappropriate. … Continue Reading
